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Friday, May 15, 2009

Debates - Extra Credit Optional Response

Since the debate sides were chosen at random, this is your chance to voice your view on either of the two topics. What is your opinion and why?

Due Friday 5/22

5 comments:

Taylor Dorsey said...

I was given the affirmative argument each time that we had a debate. I did agree with the first argument which ass gay marriage. I do believe that Gay Marriage should be legalized in all the 50 states for the reason that in the first amendment it states that the government cant make a law that favors a certain religion. Not only should the church and government be separated but when civil unions between gay people are recognized they are given almost the same exact rights as married people with few exceptions.
Abortion was a different story i was chosen to debate pro-life but i am far from it. I feel as though conception is not the beginning of a child's life. You wouldn't change the rest of your entire life for a stranger someone you don't even know so why would you change it for an unknown embryo. The pro-life people always say that adoption is a choice but you always hear of the horror stories of the ugly kids not being accepted and the horrible lives they lead in foster homes and i wouldn't want that for anyone. Therefore my vote is pro-choice i believe that a woman should be able to do what they want with their body and not have to give birth when they don't want it or it could complicate their life in the end.

Connor Clairmont said...

I would like to discuss the debate topic of gay marriage. During class I was assigned the position in favor of gay marriage and I do personally favor gay marriage, but unfortunately I was not in class to present my argument. So, I would like to discuss what my arguments would have been if I were to have been in class that day. The first point I would like to make is that the gay community is a minority in our country just like the Black community, the Hispanic community, or any other minority group. The difference is that the prevalence of homosexuality has increased very recently, unlike the Black community which has existed in America for 400 years. Unfortunately it took nearly 350 years before African Americans were given equal rights as white Americans and, and discrimination still exists today. So let’s not make that mistake again and let’s show that we are not that ignorant anymore, and let’s accept the gay community now.
Another point that I would like to make is that homosexual relationships are not illegal now, only homosexual marriage is illegal. The only differences that marriage makes are of course the symbolic meaning of a promise to be together forever, and the legal advantages such as joint filing of taxes, and making medical decisions for your spouse. The only reason that I can see for not allowing gay marriage is that we are ignorant and thus are discriminating.

Alyssa C. said...

In both debates I argued the affirmative. I agree that gay marriage should be legalized in every state. However, I do not support it in any way. I believe that marriage was meant to be between a man and a woman. There is no evidence that homosexuality is an inborn trait, even though there have been many efforts to prove the contrary. Homosexuality has many contributing causes, but it is obviously not to be compared with race or ethnicity. A person's ethnicity is what one is, whereas homosexual behavior is what one does. So I chose to have no part in it. I believe it is morally wrong. But does that mean I should tell the rest of the world it’s wrong for them? No. I wish our society had not come to accepting this behavior, yet it has. There is no stopping homosexual relationships. Everyone has their own convictions, and in a free country like America everyone should have the right to live as they choose. I also think, since the belief that homosexuality is wrong is a primarily Christian conviction, it should not be implemented in US law. There should be a separation of church and state, in order to be fair to all religions. Also, all gay couples are asking for is to be married under the definition of the government, which basically just legalizes them as a couple and gives them the same benefits as same-sex couples. So as long as churches aren’t forced to carry out these marriage ceremonies, what is wrong with giving them a piece of legal paper? It seems that there is too much heated debate over this issue and legalizing it would put an end to the conflicts it is causing. There are much more important issues, dealing with life, like abortion and war that should be focused on.
At first, I was upset that I had to argue against my beliefs. However, in the end I appreciated researching the other side. This strengthened my opinions and gave me a greater understanding to what I was opposing. For the abortion debate I argued pro-choice also against my beliefs. In this case I am also against legalizing it as well as the practice itself. Abortion is not a life-style or behavior like gay marriage, it is dealing with life. This argument could go on forever though, so I’m just going to say that I believe life begins at conception.

Candace Marie said...

During the class debates, my team was given the affirmative side for gay marriage and I was glad because I am also a supporter to legalizing gay marriage in all states. This debate has been going on for many, many years and I believe that people should just get over the fact that two people of the same sex want to get married. I believe that no matter what gender you are, you should be able to marry whom ever you want. Gay couples should enjoy the same legal rights that heterosexual marry couples currently enjoy. If two people love each other, they should definitely be allowed the same rights, privileges, and responsibility, no matter what their gender is. Marriage is a basic human right and it just shouldn’t be withheld from anyone just because they are gay or a lesbian. Also, many people are worried that children of same sex couples won’t be raised correctly, but statistics say that gay couples are just as good as heterosexual couples when it comes to raising children. Marriage is an institute that our culture revolves around that which two people of the same sex should be able to do. Marriage though, by far, is different from other contractual relationships because it creates a bond of kinship. These bonds are then turned into different and more important bonds than the other bonds two people might share. They also create significant moral, social, and legal obligations both for those who are married and everyone else. So people say what is the point of gay marriage? Well, the point of gay marriage is the point of all marriages. If two people love each other, they should be able to get married regardless of their gender. All though some individuals may not choose to acknowledge those obligations, they do indeed exist and they constitute the basis of human society, a society which includes both heterosexual and homosexual human beings.

Emi Boutsioulis said...

During the debate my team was given the negative side for the issue of gay marriage and the affirmative side for the issue of abortion. I argued against my own personal beliefs in the first part of the debate. I strongly believe that gay marriage should be legal in all 50 states of the United States. Gay couples should be able to define their love the same way as heterosexual couples, whether it be in a church, town hall, or Vegas. I think that it is unfair that gay couples cannot enjoy the same benefits of marriage that heterosexual couples indulge in. Such as, having the ability to make important medical decisions for a spouse and filing joint taxes. And when it comes to children, I feel that a gay couples would provide just as much love and nurture to the child as heterosexual couples.
I also argued for pro-choice which I actually agree with. I feel that the ultimate decision to terminate a pregnancy should be up to the woman and her doctor. I don’t think that women should have the baby only to give them up for adoption because there is always a fear of the child not being adopted.
I am glad that I was assigned the negative side for the issue of gay marriage because it allowed me to research what I was against. It opened me to some opinions that I would not have thought of. It also made me more aware of what I am against and where the “other side” is coming from.